For countless families across the USA, live-in childcare provides the answer to many scheduling and caregiving challenges. In the case of au pairs, this means welcoming a caregiver into your home and providing them with a private bedroom, while embracing them as a member of the family.

Compared to other forms of childcare, like daycares or nannies, live-in childcare offers several key advantages. Here's just a few of them.

Convenience

Having your caregiver living in your home means they’ll never be late or miss a shift, and they’ll have ample time to bond with your children. They’ll also become familiar with your home and routines, reducing the need for ongoing instruction. If you need to check in with them outside of working hours, you won’t have to rely on phone calls or texts—you can simply ask them during family dinner or knock on their door.

Flexibility

One of the biggest advantages of live-in childcare is the ability to customize your nanny or au pair’s schedule to fit your family’s needs. With an au pair, you can schedule up to 45 hours per week (with a maximum of 10 hours per day) of on-duty time. This allows you to easily adjust hours when things change—like a school cancellation or an unexpected sick day. The ability to tailor your au pair’s schedule makes live-in care one of the most flexible options for busy families.

Building trust

Living with your child’s caregiver helps foster a strong sense of trust. Au pairs and host families often form relationships that go beyond professional boundaries and feel more like family. The shared experience of living together—sharing meals, spaces, and even daily routines—naturally builds close ties. And these close bonds help your au pair better care for your children, as they feel more connected and invested in your family.

What host families are saying

Many Cultural Care host families report a higher level of happiness and functionality in their homes with live-in childcare. Here’s what some of them have to say:

• Murray family, SC: “If you’re open to having someone live with you, it’s a wonderful option for high-quality care. I needed reliable, cost-effective childcare. Zuly, our au pair, plays a big role in our family—she’s sweet and loving with the kids, organized in the house, and open to changes. My kids love her like an aunt.”

• Klidjian family, GA: “How does taking care of newborn triplets and a 2-year-old sound? That’s exactly what our au pair, Gabi, signed up for a year and a half ago. Gabi is efficient, engaging, warm, punctual, tough when she needs to be, and caring. It’s not as invasive as you might think to have an au pair living in your home. It’s actually fun and makes the home a warm, inviting place to raise children.”

• Sharma family, MA: “We faced many challenges with childcare in the U.S. and wanted more for our children—someone driven and motivated. We’ve found that nothing compares to the flexibility and family feeling of having an au pair. There was an adjustment period, but now it works perfectly, and we couldn’t imagine going back to any other childcare option.”